September 17, 2012 7:24pm EDTSeptember 17, 2012 1:10pm EDTFor years, Alex Smith was the under-achieving No. 1 pick in San Francisco. Now he's transforming his image in a big way. After out-performing Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford, the 49ers' QB is moving to playmaker status.

There’s little doubt the San Francisco 49ers are the NFL’s best team two weeks into the season. After eight-point wins over two loaded 2011 playoff teams—the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions—their physical defense and power running game have picked up where they left off last season.

But no 49er has displayed their toughness this season more than quarterback Alex Smith. The lasting image of Sunday night’s 27-19 home win over Detroit was Smith playing through a bloodied nose in the fourth quarter to help San Francisco put away the game with a clutch touchdown drive.

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It was a performance that his coach Jim Harbaugh, a gritty quarterback during his playing days, could appreciate most.

“He’s as tough as a $2 steak,” Harbaugh told reporters after the game. “I grew up eating a lot of them. I know what I’m talking about.”

Smith is doing his best to shake his unfair “game manager” label for good, and out-dueling prolific passers Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford is a great start.

For a franchise that’s won Super Bowls with Hall of Fame passers Joe Montana and Steve Young, it might surprise you that Smith, with his current streak, is the one who has thrown the most consecutive passes (216) without an interception.

Of the quarterbacks who have played in two games this season, Smith has the highest passer rating (115.9). He’s completed 70.2 percent of his passes, thrown for four touchdowns and has been unfazed by being sacked seven times.

We’ll never know for sure how close the Niners were to replacing Smith with Peyton Manning. Since the reported offseason courting of Manning, Harbaugh has been firmly behind Smith in his first full year working with him.

Going into this season, given how the Niners’ offense struggled in the NFC Championship Game loss to the Giants, the question was whether Smith could be the quarterback to take them to the Super Bowl.

It’s easy to forget Smith was a first overall pick. It’s easy to forget he was taken ahead of Rodgers in the same first round in 2005.

The pedigree for Smith has always been there, but the Niners failed to give him the schematic stability and personnel support early in his career. Now that they have it, he’s taken full advantage of it.

He’s always had dynamic tight end Vernon Davis, but with a much-improved Michael Crabtree being joined by Randy Moss and Mario Manningham, Smith is working with his best-ever receiving corps in San Francisco. Smith’s mental toughness has been equally impressive. He’s hung in well in San Francisco over the years, driven to prove he’s the right quarterback to lead a championship team.

It’s about time to look at Smith as more playmaker than caretaker, and if he helps the Niners win Super Bowl XLVII, no one will call him the latter ever again.